In the operation of public switched telecommunications networks (PSTNs), Recent Change Memory Administration Centers (RCMACs) take service orders from business offices in response to customer calls and populate those service orders with the services requested by customers. A recent change memory administration center (RCMAC) is a technical support center where a group of technicians operate work stations in communication with a system for programming telephone company switches to enter changes in the profile data stored in the memories of the switches. For example, if a subscriber purchases a new telephone service, an RCMAC technician might enter the data for modifying that subscriber's profile in the serving end office switch, to activate the newly subscribed service. In existing RCMAC systems, the automated network provisioning elements reject and direct memory change requests that they cannot automatically process to such manual processing by the RCMAC staff. This process, however, involves printing the rejected orders and manually processing those orders to assign and complete the memory administration work. There has been no automated administration, assignment, tracking or measurement of the work by the actual technicians.
The function of a recent change memory administration center (RCMAC) is manual service order entry, for entering and modifying subscriber profile data stored in the memories of telephone company central office switches. A variety of automated systems are in use today for activating or modifying telephone subscriber's services, including updating the memories in the central office switches. However, no matter how highly automated, those systems invariably cannot process one hundred percent of all service orders. Some orders cannot be completed automatically, and any portions of such uncompleted orders that relate to switch memory administration functions fall out to an RCMAC for manual order entry processing.
It may be helpful first to consider how orders currently reach the RCMAC. In a typical PSTN today, a customer calls a business office to order a new telephone service associated with the customer's telephone number, for example dial tone, call waiting or caller ID. An agent at the business office enters the relevant data into the provisioning system(s) of the PSTN. For the switch memory related functions, the provisioning system(s) processes the data into appropriate format and hands off the formatted data to a system named `MARCH` (Memory Administration Recent Change System). MARCH qualifies the data, and if the data meets the relevant qualification criteria, MARCH transmits the data to the appropriate central office switch for entry into memory.
However, MARCH also recognizes a certain percentage of memory orders as unacceptable for such automatic processing. The service order may not qualify for automatic flow-through directly to the switch because of the order format or the type of service ordered. Current examples of service orders that are not amenable to the automatic entry into the switch include orders for Centrex and ISDN services. It has been estimated that March disqualifies 25% or more of all memory related service orders.
In the existing system, MARCH directs or `dumps` the unaccepted orders to a batch printer in the RCMAC for manual entry. The printer output is termed a `PAC`. A technician in the RCMAC translates one message from the PAC output by the MARCH system into a format appropriate for entry into the particular switch to effectuate the customer's service request. For this purpose, the technician operates a terminal in communication with MARCH, to input the translated message back into MARCH for final processing and delivery to the serving central office switch and entry into memory.
MARCH will typically hold orders until the date they are due. If revisions come in before entry into the switch, MARCH will modify the order essentially by overlaying the revision onto the existing order. However, once the RCMAC instructs the MARCH to process a day's flow-through work, MARCH disqualifies any subsequent revisions relating to an order and prints those orders out in one of the day's PACs. One of the technicians in the RCMAC manually enters each subsequent revision, in the manner outlined above. Also, for the cases where the order is otherwise disqualified, e.g. for a service such as ISDN that is not amenable to flow-through automated processing, MARCH will print out all of the revisions serially in the PAC(s). The technician must then process each order and revision thereof to finally produce the memory data for input to the switch to provide the customer the actual service(s) requested.
The PAC printed output of the various orders provides no tracking of the orders, not even a list or orders by order number.
In this manual order processing and tracking of the RCMAC work load 1200 to 2000 orders typically print to high speed printers from the MARCH operational support system on a daily basis. The paper orders are then stripped and sorted into work bins. The clerical force picks up work and enters service order data into MARCH. Work is complete when all bins are empty. This paper intensive environment causes the following problems, among others:
Misplaced orders PA1 Lost orders PA1 Inability to quantify work load PA1 Inability to measure productivity PA1 Inability to manage completion of work PA1 Labor intensive and difficult to administer, track, or measure the receipt, completion of work load offered daily to the RCMAC.
Bell Communications Research, Inc. (Bellcore) has proposed a Provisioning Analyst Work Station (PAWS) as a workstation based system designed to be an interface to, and single point of contact with other systems in a PSTN. Among other things the system is proposed to streamline service request exception and work processing and perform other related administrative tasks. The system comprises an umbrella program which includes an RCMAC module. However, the PAWS system merely computerizes the same process steps which now are performed manually in the manner described above. Each order is treated as a separate order with the result that there is no reduction in the number of involved processing steps. Additionally, the PAWS system, being an umbrella system designed to perform a multiplicity of tasks, involves very significant hardware expense.
The patent literature has previously addressed various aspects of switch provisioning to provide new services.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,347,564 issued Sep. 13, 1994 to Mark F. Davis et al. and is assigned to The Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company of Maryland, i.e. a subsidiary of the assignee of the instant application.
The Davis et al. Patent discloses an automated translation input system to convert Mechanized Translation System (MTS) orders into Recent Change Messages that can be loaded directly into a program controlled switch. The disclosed system permits use of the output of the MTS, which would otherwise constitute a printed form, for input to the Automated Translation Input System (ATIS). The ATIS analyzes the forms and the associated Recent Changes, and the Recent Change Messages are prepared. The resulting Recent Change Messages are inspected by the SCC technician who, through a manual option in the ATIS system, gives the command to download the translations directly into the switch.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,511,116 issued Apr. 23, 1996 to Shastry et al. The Shastry et al. Patent relates to provisioning customer services in an advanced intelligent network (AIN). Specifically, this Patent teaches use of a service management system (SMS) to create data tables for organizing data used by call processing procedures. The data tables and any call processing records created on the SMS are loaded into the MSAP application in a service control point (SCP) for actual execution of call processing. During call processing, the SCP receives a query from a switching office of the telephone network and executes a call processing record (CPR) stored in the SCP. Table nodes in the CPR facilitate access to information stored in the tables as part of the procedure for formulating the response message for communication back to the switching office.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,481,601 issued Jan. 2, 1996 to Nazif et. The Nazif et al. Patent also relates to service creation in an AIN environment. Specifically, this Patent teaches use of a service creation and management application running in a SMS service management system which is illustrated in FIG. 2 of that patent. The creation application apparently is an application sometimes referred to as `SPACE` that may be used to program the call processing records (CPRs) into an integrated service control point (ISCP). As disclosed, a separate MSAP execution application runs in the services control point (SCP) . The Nazif et al. Patent discloses the specific interface between the creation application and the MSAP execution application to facilitate transfer of CPRs created in the service management system to the SCP for storage and execution. The interface also facilitates activation, monitoring, tracing, auditing and other management of telecommunication services provided through execution of the CPR in the SCP.
As shown in FIG. 2, the service management system includes a user work station, Program Language Data Translator, Encoder/Decoder, Message Constructor/Deconstructor and Data Communications Manager. Through the work station, a technician operates the creation application to create CPRs. The application generates graphs of the desired services for display to the user via the work station. Such a graph is useful for an operator to create and understand the telephone service being created. However, the execution application cannot interpret the graph directly. The CPR graph is translated into a binary representation which can be used to process calls in the execution environment of the SCP. The Data Communication Manager adds header information to the CPR and transfers the resulting data to the SCP which stores the binary representation of the CPR in the Data Base.
The Patent also describes a number of messages, apparently permitting a technician working through a terminal of the service management system to audit the database records of the SCP.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,450,480 issued Sep. 12, 1995 to Susan K. Man et al. The Man et al. Patent also relates to service creation in an AIN. FIG. 2 of that patent shows the service management system (SMS) utilizing SPACE type service creation application. The SMS communicates call processing records (CPRs) to the MSAP execution application running in the services control point (SCP). The emphasis of this patent, as indicated by the summary and abstract, is on a specific procedure for creating CPRs through the graphical user interface provided by SPACE, for example by prompting an operator and receiving selections of optional and required nodes for the graph of the service and enabling the selected nodes in the general service specification of the CPR.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,241,588 issued Aug. 31, 1993 to David L. Babson, III and Thomas C. Ely. The Babson, III et al. Patent pertains to a method and apparatus for creating and implementing customer service procedures for individual customers of an AIN type network and provides for the creation and execution of customized call processing information records stored in an SCP, to provide desired services. The records are created by an operator at a display terminal to provide a visual representation of the desired service in the form of a flow chart referred to as a service "graph". New customized services are created or existing services are modified in a graphical environment by creating or modifying a customer's service graph on the display terminal. Data corresponding to the service graph is then stored in the SCP.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,533,116 issued Jul. 2, 1996 to Timo Vesterinen. The Vesterinen Patent discloses a network management system for managing a telecommunication network having a variety of different exchanges having different interfaces and/or different internal command languages. Vesterinen recognizes that large telecommunication networks have many exchanges of different types having different software. The exchanges are continuously replaced, modified, and upgraded. Software is updated, and often the software changes cause changes in the interface with the management system. The syntax of commands may change, new parameters are added, new fields appear in the command responses, or completely new commands may be generated. The different management interfaces make it difficult to administer the data in the exchanges on a day to day basis, for example to delete or add subscribers, modify subscriber services, etc.
Vesterinen provides a network management system that allows the user to operate in a high-level element independent language. The system provides the necessary conversions between the high level language and the commands and responses for the specific network elements.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,528,677 issued Jun. 18, 1996 to Butler et al. The Butler et al. Patent discloses a system for implementing subscriber service requests in a telephone communication network, particularly one in which the various switches of the network use different communication protocols.
FIG. 1 of that patent provides a schematic representation of a telephone network including access stations, local exchange carrier central office switches, interexchange carrier switches, service control system (SS7), and computers. FIGS. 2A-2D illustrate the preferred architecture for providing requested services to subscribers. As shown therein, the network includes an access manager, a service manager, service element managers, and the actual network elements.
As shown in FIG. 2A, the network includes access terminals in communication with the access manager. The access manager stores a profile of available subscriber services, provides access security and a gateway into the network and to the network services, and provides transaction management for service requests. For example, the access manager determines whether a subscriber is authorized to present service requests and determines whether requested services are authorized, before transmitting the requests. The transaction control system within the access manager communicates the requests to a service manager shown in detail in FIG. 2B.
The service manager is configured to receive all service requests which enter the network and, in general, provide overall transaction management. The service manager determines which components of service element managers are operable for processing requests, selects those appropriate components for each service and transfers the service request to the appropriate element manager(s). Service element managers (FIG. 2C) receive and process service requests under the management of service manager. Each service manager develops instructions or data usable by the network elements for implementing the requested service or service change.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,511,113 issued Apr. 23, 1996 to Tasaki et al. The Tasaki et al. Patent discloses a specific technique for recording intelligent network service related charging information on the AMA journal of a service switching point (SSP) type central office switch. When a subscriber at terminal requests an intelligent network type `additional` service, the SSP sends a request for the additional service to the service control point (SCP). The SCP executes control for the additional service. The SCP also creates charging information related to the additional service and sends that information to the SSP. The SSP creates charging information related to the ordinary service. The SSP records detailed charging information combining both the charging information for the additional service and the charging information related to the ordinary service.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,483,585 issued Jan. 9, 1996 to Parker et al. Element managers have been developed by the switch vendors to provide a management interface into their respective switches. The element manager utilizes command protocols compatible with the switch, and the element manager itself can be managed by a central computer. The Parker et al. Patent discloses a methodology for communication between the central computer and each element manager, to configure individual switches to add or remove services.
The Parker et al. methodology uses CMIS/CMIP protocol messaging. The central computer sends M-CREATE, M-SET and M-DELETE type message to create, modify or delete service information. The element manager provides corresponding response messages when it has completed the respective operations.
In the Parker et al. methodology, the central computer sends an initial set of requests relating to a service to the element manager and monitors the response messages to determine if the element manager successfully performed all of the requested operations. If the element manager fails to perform one or more of the requests in the initial set, the computer sends a second set of requests canceling any requests in the initial set that were successfully completed by the element manager.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,461,669 issued Oct. 24, 1995 to Bernard Vilain. The Vilain Patent discloses a telecommunication network comprising switching nodes, each of which includes a call and service control point and a bearer control point switch. The call and service control point performs all signaling functions related to call control and service control, such as call set-up, supervision and clearing down. The bearer control point in turn performs the switching and signaling functions related to actual connection control.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,404,396 issued Apr. 4, 1995 to Steven Brennan. The Brennan Patent pertains to the control of call features within a stored program controlled telecommunication switching system and to a system for managing the interaction of a plurality of such features within a network. The disclosed feature management software controls switch based features, features provided by an adjunct, and SCP features.
A service switching platform has logic for completion of calls between subscribers and software blocks for implementing specific call features in response to network events produced by subscriber actions. A feature manager associated with each call feature receives signals from the network indicative of the network events produced by subscriber actions and provides control signals to the call feature software. A database stores information related to each subscriber within the network who has the capability of invoking and controlling the call features. A feature interaction manager is connected between the feature manager and the database for receiving signals from the feature manager indicative of events received by the manager. In response to the received events and the information stored within the database related to the subscriber which caused the events, the feature interaction manager instructs the feature manager on what signals to send to the feature logic software, in order to interactively implement the features invoked by the events produced by the actions of the subscriber.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,402,477 issued Mar. 28, 1995 to Michael L. McMahan and Michele B. Gammel. The McMahan et al. Patent pertains to a method and system for configuring a programmable telephone. A user establishes and accesses a special service by using the function keys of the telephone. The telephone offers a variable array of control function keys, through use of a touch screen overlaid on top of an LCD display, for establishing special services. The telephone connects to a switch through network line (FIG. 2). Telephone stores a list of services offered through the network and the switch. The McMahan et al. Patent provides a method for automatically configuring the telephone to offer the user only those services which are actually supported by the switching network.
FIG. 4 of the patent depicts the execution of the steps involved in configuring the telephone. In one step, the telephone initializes a service to be the first service in the list of possible available services. Step two initializes a first procedure in the list of possible procedures for establishing the service. In step three, the telephone communicates with the network in order to execute the procedure. The determination is then made as to whether or not the procedure is established. Steps 108 and 114 deal with the possibility of more procedures.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,339 issued Oct. 4, 1994 to John D. Scobee. Scobee discloses a system that responds automatically to a request for a special service by (1) designing a circuit required to support the requested special service, (2) identifying network facilities and configurations for implementing the designed circuit, (3) assigning those facilities to the circuit, (4) causing the various equipment providing the facilities to be interconnected to implement the service, (5) verifying the integrity of the special service, and (6) delivering the service to the customer.
The system further provides direct transport facilities in the inventory of network facilities at the level required to provide the special service between the particular points in the network that must be interconnected to provide the service. The system will employ procedures for further identifying or developing transport facilities if sufficient facilities at the necessary level are not already available to meet the customer's request.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,222,125 issued Jun. 22, 1993 to Creswell et al. The Creswell et al. Patent discloses a telephone switching system that has an adjunct unit operative for allowing telephone subscribers to control the manner in which they receive telephone calls.
To initiate the service, a user dials a telephone station number associated with adjunct. A connection is made to terminal and the subscriber receives a unique telephone service number. The user is assigned a PIN and a security code group of Caller Identification Numbers (CINs). The adjunct stores a data record for the subscriber (see FIG. 2). Once the system has established the subscriber's service, upon the entry of a certain CIN number, the calling party is not billed for the associated call. The telephone call is automatically billed to the subscriber.
The subscriber may call their own service telephone number to reach the adjunct, then upon the entry of the CIN and the PIN, the subscriber can establish a long distance telephone connection to a desired telephone station. The charges for this call from the subscriber are billed in a prearranged manner, e.g. to his home telephone number, on his credit card, etc. The subscriber can also program various personalized services in the adjunct, such as call forwarding, caller screening and other features.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,428,679 issued Jun. 27, 1995, to Phil H. French and is assigned to C&P of Maryland, a subsidiary of the assignee of the instant application. The French patent describes an automated method and system for confirming the installation of new services in a PSTN and for providing prompt and convenient correction of errors and automatic maintenance confirmation to insure that an reported problems have been remedied.
The method and system utilize an adjunct processor for effecting voice messaging services through the use of an Interactive Voice Processor (IVP). This is connectable to the switches of the system and to subscriber lines connected thereto. A Local Area Network (LAN) is connected via a first data network to such switches and via the adjunct processor to a second business functions data network. A second adjunct processor is connected to receive data representative of special services ordered by subscribers and also connected to the IVP and LAN. A control processor is connected to the LAN for accessing the first and second data networks and databases connected thereto. The second adjunct processor is responsive to data representative of the special services ordered and provides input signals to the IVP and to the LAN. The IVP responsive to signals from the second adjunct processor initiates connection to the subscriber line to receive the ordered special services and delivers thereto a voice message confirmation of the installation of the service. Further, the control processor accesses and displays data representative of the service ordered and the signals representative of that service delivered to the switches and adjunct processor, with such control processor having an input terminal for receiving input effective to change the data provided to the switches and adjunct processor.